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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. J 



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MEMOIR 


OF 


WILLIAM A. JACKSON, 


A 

MEMBER OF THE ALBAITF BAR, 


AM) 


Colonel of tlje I8tjr JUgtment, $J. §. Mtmta, 


WHO DIED AT THE CITY OF WASHINGTON, 


NOVEMBER 11, 1861. 


PUBLISHED BY THE BAB OF THE CITY OF ALBANY. 

W 


^^pX 0' 


ALBANY : 


JOEL M UN SELL. 


1862. 



/ 



MEMOIR. 



Col. William Ayrault Jackson was born in the 
city of Schenectady, N. Y., on the 29th day of March, 
1832. His father, Isaac W. Jackson, was then Pro- 
fessor of Mathematics in Union College, of which he 
was a graduate, a position he has held uninterruptedly 
to the present time. 

William was the eldest of the family. He fitted 
for college at home, under the instruction of his father, 
and entered at the early age of fifteen the Freshman 
Class of Union, at the commencement of the academic 
year in 1847. 

During his collegiate career, he displayed marked 
and brilliant talents in various departments, and by 
the exhibition of the frank and generous qualities, 
which were characteristic of him, made among the 
under graduates of his time many and warm friends. 
He then more particularly won distinction as a forci- 



MEMOIR. 



i>h' 



and elegant extempore speaker, and skilful debater. 
In these accomplishments he was acknowledged to be 
without a rival among his college cotemporaries, and 
they were at a later period exercised with effect on 
the wider held of political discussion. 

He graduated with honor in the summer of 1851, 
and during the succeeding year remained at home, de- 
voting his attention to the study of general literature, 
and giving some of his time to the study of the law, that 
being the profession which he had chosen. Previous, 
however, to his regular entry upon his legal studies, 
and during the year 1852, he spent some months with 
an uncle .Mr. I. C. Chesbrough, a civil engineer, 
and at that time engaged upon the survey of the 
Albanj and Susquehanna Rail Road. In December, 
L852, he removed to the city of Albany, with some 
of the most prominent and influential families in which 
hf was nearly connected, and entered the office of 
Marcus T. Reynolds, Esq. He also, about the same 
time attended a course of lectures at the Albany Law 
School. He was admitted to the bar on the 1 Oth of 
April. L 858, and immediately commenced the practice 
of his profession in Albany, which was his residence 
until his deal h. 

Soon alter the commencement of his legal career, he 



formed a partnership with his cousin, Frederick Towns- 
end, Esq., an accomplished gentleman, since so favor- 
ably known as Adjutant General of the State during 
the whole of Gov. King's and a part of Gov. Morgan's 
administration, who as Colonel of the 3d Regiment 
of New York Volunteers distinguished himself by 
his brilliant gallantry at the battle of Big Bethel, 
and is now a Major in the United States Infantry. 
They were associated during the whole of Colonel 
Jackson's connection with the law. For a short 
period, during the year 1857, Alfred Conkling, formerly 
United States District Judge of the Northern District 
of New York, was professionally connected with them, 
under the firm name of Conkling, Townsend & Jack- 
son. On the 1st of May, 1858, their business associa- 
tion with Judge Conkling having previously termi- 
nated, they took as a partner Richard M. Strong, Esq., 
and the firm name was changed to Townsend, Jackson 
& Strong. This partnership continued until the stir- 
ring national events of the spring of 1861 turned 
the thoughts of all from peaceful pursuits to arms, 
when Col. Jackson, who had been at the commence- 
ment of that year appointed and now held the office 
of Inspector General of the State, relinquished the 
profession to which he had been bred, and engaged in 



6 MEMOIR. 

the defence of the government, in the great struggle 
inaugurated by the attack upon and fall of Fort 
Sumpter. 

Before proceeding to the mention of Col. Jack- 
son's brief but honorable military career, we pause to 
say a few words of the character and talents which 
he displayed during the time of his practice at the 
bar. Possessed of a singularly handsome person, with 
frank and genial manners, having a bold and energetic 
character, and a quick penetrating intellect, being an 
agreeable speaker and a vigorous writer, he fast made 
friends and admirers, and soon acquired a prominent 
and influential position at the capital of the state. 
WCll grounded in the principles of the law, and prompt 
in the despatch of business, he obtained a very con- 
siderable professional practice. Always taking a deep 
int. rest in politics, state and national, and mingling 
freely and on intimate terms during almost the whole 
of this period with the most distinguished political 
lenders. Ik- mh.ii heeame appreciated as a man of ability, 
;iikI ;i brilliant and effective speaker. His political 
views being in accordance with those of the Repub- 
lican party, he early took that side, and in the cam- 
paigns of L856, L858 and L860, rendered valuable 

Bervices with his pen. and on the stump, to that organ- 



MEMOIR. 



ization. In 1858, indeed, he made quite an extended 
tour, and addressed numerous large assemblies in the 
western part of the state. 

When, therefore, in the spring of 1861 he embraced 
with characteristic ardor the career of arms, he had 
acquired a high position in his profession and in society, 
and was making himself felt and his influence appre- 
ciable to a degree unusual in one so young. 

No reasons then for so complete a change in the 
plan and pursuits of his life existed, other than a gener- 
ous patriotism and an honorable ambition to win the 
praise of honest men by his sacrifices for and services 
to his country. 

Successful in raising a regiment whose superior in 
material was not to be found in the state, he originally 
intended to take the position of Lieutenant-Colonel, 
devolving its command upon an army officer of experi- 
ence. His plans failed in that respect, and after much 
hesitation and doubt from a consciousness of his inex- 
perience, he was finally prevailed upon to accept the 
Colonelcy. On the 18th of June, 1861, he received 
his commission as Colonel of this, the 18th Regiment 
of New York Volunteers, with the rank from May 
13th, 1861. From the breaking out of the war in 
April to the time he received his commission, he had 



been arduously engaged as Inspector-General of the 
State in aiding the Governor in the organization of its 
forces, and hence by close application had acquired 
military knowledge which was of value to him in his 
new position. 

From the day, however, that he took command of 
of the 18th he was constant and unwearied in his 
devotion to and care for his men. Not unwilling to 
learn, nor unwisely self-confident as were some of the 
new officers of volunteers at that period, by the indus- 
trious application of his quick vigorous mind to the 
acquisition of a knowledge of the details of his duty, 
lie very soon mastered them. 

His Regiment left Albany in June, and proceeding 
directly to Washington, encamped near the city. Here 
began his first trial of camp life. The officers under 
his command were with but very few exceptions with- 
out experience or practical military knowledge, and the 
men, like almost all the volunteers at that time, owin<>- 
to the busy brief period that had elapsed since their 
enlistment, were a mere uniformed mass without drill 
<>r discipline, rather than a regiment of soldiers. 

To change all this was the determination of the 
Colonel. lie resolved to make it a regiment in truth, 
and one whieli should he inferior to none in the field. 



MEMOIR. 



9 



With this object in view, he was devoted, constant and 
unwearied, sparing neither body nor mind, but straining 
every faculty from the time he arrived at Washington 
until the disastrous battle of Manassas, and indeed 
until his death, in his efforts to perfect himself as an 
officer, and to bring to a high state of discipline the 
men under his command. In how short a time he, 
with the earnest and praiseworthy co-operation of his 
officers, succeeded in doing this ; and how well he did 
succeed, was soon to be shown. 

On the 12th of July, in accordance with the general 
plan of a forward movement into Virginia, his Regi- 
ment was ordered across the Potomac and encamped 
near Alexandria. About the same time it was brigaded 
with the 16th, 31st and 32d New York Volunteers, 
forming together the 2d Brigade under the command 
of Col. Davies of the 16th Regiment. 

On the 16th of July, commenced the memorable 
advance of the army of the Potomac ; Col. Jackson's 
Regiment moved from Alexandria in the afternoon of 
that day, and, together with the other regiments form- 
ing the 2d Brigade, took part in the battle, or rather 
prolonged skirmish, of the 18th of July. In this, his 
conduct was gallant and meritorious, and his men be- 
haved with the steadiness of veterans. In the battle 



of Manassas, on the 21st of July, which resulted so 
disastrously to our arms, the 2d Brigade were upon the 
left and constituted the reserve, not taking part in 
the main battle, fought principally by the right and 
centre. 

It does not, of course, come within the scope of this 
Memoir to attempt any general description of the 
events of that terrible and humiliating clay. It is 
sufficient to say that the 18th Regiment, the whole 
2d Brigade, and indeed the whole Division, of which 
it formed a part, behaved with marked gallantry and 
steadiness. The 2d Brigade, covering Captains Green 
and Hunt's Batteries during the early part of the day, 
and with them effectually defeating a formidable at- 
tempt of the enemy's right to Hank the left of our 
line when later our troops lied in such panic and con- 
fusion from the held, was ordered to Centreville to 
protect the retreat. As to what followed and the con- 
duct of Col. Jackson at this crisis, an extract from the 
report of Capt. Green, in command of a battery. 
gives an interesting account : 

"' 1 chose a position," lie says, "on the crest of a hill 

which, from its shape, gave command of the ground to 
our h'lt and also of the road along which our Division 
whs retiring. From tins position I could perfectly 



MEMOIR. 11 



sweep with my fire 180° front, right and left, down a 
gentle slope. Four regiments were placed as my sup- 
port, and the force at this point could have stopped 
double its number. 

" At this point an unauthorized person gave orders 
to retreat ; I refused the order, but all my supporting 
regiments but one (Col. Jackson s 18th N. Y. V.), moved 
off to the rear. Col. Jackson most gallantly offered his 
Regiment as a support, saying ' that it should remain by 
me as long as there should be any fighting to be done 
there' The above mentioned person again made his 
appearance at this time and again ordered me to 
retreat, and ordered Col. Jackson to form column of 
division on my right and retreat with me as all was 
lost. The order was of course disregarded and in about 
two minutes the head of a column of the enemy's 
cavalry came up at a run, opening out of the woods in 
beautiful order. I was prepared for it, and the column 
had not gone more than a hundred yards out of the 
woods before shells were burst at their head and 
directly in their midst. They broke in every direction, 
and no more cavalry came out of the woods." 

The 18th, in compliance with orders from the Com- 
manding General, retreated covering Green's Battery ; 



12 MEMOIR. 

halted for a short time at Fairfax ; Col. Jackson ascer- 
taining that the General, despairing of bringing the 
defeated army to a halt, had himself gone to Wash- 
ington, it again resumed the retreat and at midday on 
the 22d took possession of its old camp at Alexandria. 
This retreat was effected in perfect good order through- 
out ; and on the way back the Colonel was enabled to 
afford aid to his fellow-townsman, Lieut. Hill of the 
U. S. Artillery, in bringing off two of the guns of his 
battery. 

All the officers who were present bear testimony to 
the gallantry of Col. Jackson, and the admirable 
behavior of his Regiment, throughout that memorable 
advance towards and retreat from Manassas. 

During the whole time he was almost constantly 
mounted, and he bore up with astonishing endurance 
under the most exhausting fatigue. He says himself, 
in a letter written to a friend on the 23d of July : 
"from half past two Sunday morning until Monday at 
midday, we neither slept nor rested. 1 was in my 
saddle nearly all the time." 

Alter this battle, the Regiment not sharing in the 

general demoralization of the troops, remained near 

\ lexandria ; Bhifbing its camp occasionally, taking its 

turn at guard ami picket duty, and for a time engaged 



MEMOIR. 



13 



in building Fort Ward, one of the numerous fortifica- 
tions erected to protect Washington. 

When Gen. McClellan, taking command, commenced 
the reorganization of the Army of the Potomac, the 
18th Regiment was placed in Gen. Newton's Brigade 
and Gen. Franklin's Division. 

The devotion and enthusiasm of Col. Jackson, in 
raising to the highest standard the discipline and 
morale of his men, did not flag. Until attacked by 
his last illness, he was hardly ever absent from the 
camp, and it was an extremely rare thing for him to 
sleep out of it; and he took eagerly upon his shoulders 
the thousand constant cares and labors consequent 
upon a scrupulously conscientious discharge of his 
duties. In a word, his whole time and energies were 
employed. In all this, and indeed during the whole 
of his connection with the Regiment, it is but justice 
to record, that his efforts were much aided, and the 
character of the regiment for discipline and efficiency 
raised, by the steady support and uniformly gallant 
conduct of his Lieutenant Colonel (now Colonel), 
Young, a townsman, and the officer who succeeded 
him in command. 

These wearing anxieties of his responsible position, 
and the unaccustomed privations and exposures of 



14 MEMOIR. 



life in the field, in an unhealthy climate, were unfor- 
tunately laying in the constitution of Jackson the 
foundations of fatal disease. His health, which had 
been, through life, up to this period, almost perfect, 
now showed signs of giving way ; and during a 
hurried visit home in August, his friends were 
alarmed at the inroads made by fatigue and anxiety 
upon it. Although, for some time after his return to 
the regiment, he seemed better, he was towards the 
end of October seized with an illness, which, assuming 
the form of bilious remittent fever, proved fatal. 
Prostrated for some days in his tent, his brother 
officers were unable to induce him to "give up" and 
seek relief from his official duties, and it was not 
until his illness assumed a most serious form, that he 
consented to apply to be removed to Washington. 
This was done on the 30th of October, and Dr. Stone, 
one of the most eminent physicians of the city, was 
then immediately called to his bedside, but it was too 
late. For a low days, no critical symptoms appeared, 
and his condition was not considered as imminently 
dangerous until the 7th of November. Hemorrhage 
of the bowels, and afterwards of the brain, then set 
in. destroying all hope. On Monday, the Nth of 

November, a little before six o'clock in the eveninc 



MEMOIR. 15 



his spirit passed away. His last words were these, 
uttered just before the power of articulation departed, 
in a strong, deliberate voice, but evidently with great 
effort : " I do believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, I trust 
in Him." 

The remains of Col. Jackson were taken home for 
interment. They were escorted to the cars at Wash- 
ington by his regiment, every member of which 
expressed a desire to testify his respect for his beloved 
Colonel. At Albany, they were received by the mili- 
tary of the city, and lay in state. 

He was buried at Schenectady on the 14th of 
November, 1861. 

Borne to his last resting place by the friends of his 
youth whom he loved so well, amid the scenes of his 
boyhood he sleeps, requiemed by the sighing pines 
which wave over his grave. 

Beautiful and joyous was his youth ; bold and 
vigorous his manhood; his death honorable, nay 
glorious; for, although he fell not by the sword nor 
amid the maddening whirl and din of battle, yet by 
his self-consuming labors for his country's weal, were 
sown the seeds of that fell disease which was his 
destroyer. 

He was young when he died, but so matured was 



16 MEMOIR. 

his character, so rich in ;ill manly qualities, that he 
seemed to have passed his contemporaries, and to 
have taken, by a single bound, a high place above 
them. 

The civil war, which he lived to see assume gigantic 
and fearful proportions, still rages undiminished; the 
eyes of all men are riveted, not to be turned aside 
but for an instant, upon that great drama. Act 
follows act so rapidly that yesterday seems a year 
ago, and the events of the past float in our remem- 
brance vaguely and uncertainly as last summer's 
clouds. The tumult and peril of the time forbid to 
linger long over the tomb of the most loved one, and 
the mighty flood of public grief and calamity seems 
to drown all private sorrow. Yet the memory of the 
departed Jackson remains and will ever remain fresh 
and vivid in the hearts of the many friends and com- 
panions of his life. In brighter, happier days in the 
I'ut me. when peace shall again smile upon the land, 
and time shall have softened the first sharp pangs of 

their grief, they will speak gently and regret fully but 

proudlj together of the one who is gone, recalling the 
eagle eye, the noble port, the bright intellect and the 
generous heart of him summoned so early, hut who 
so w ell ran his brief race on < ■ .- 1 it h. 



kmt&fap <rf the §Xbw% §at 



At a meeting of the Bar of the City of Albany, 
held at the City Hall, on the 14th day of November, 
1861. 

On motion of Mr. John J. Olcott, Mr. Jacob I. 
Werner was called to the Chair, and Messrs. Isaac 
Edwards and Ernest J. Miller were appointed Secre- 
taries. 

On motion of Hon. A. D. Robinson, the Chair ap- 
pointed Messrs. Robinson, J. V. L. Pruyn, R. M. 
Strong, R. W. Peckham, Jr., and J. B. Sturtevant, a 
Committee to prepare resolutions expressing the sense 
of the meeting. 

Hon. Clark B. Cochrane then addressed the meet- 
ing as follows : 

Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen of the Bar : 

The news of the event which has called together 
the Bar of Albany, on the present occasion, has fallen 
with mournful weight upon the hearts of millions of 



18 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 

our countrymen. The removal by death of William 
A. Jackson from the newly chosen field of his activi- 
ties, in the midst of his growing usefulness and rising 
fame, and in view of what he was and what he pro- 
mised to become, produced, as it was calculated to 
produce, a profound sensation in the public mind. 
The deep and universal solicitude, the expressions of 
private hopes and public anxiety with reference to 
the chances of his recovery, from the time his danger- 
ous illness became known until the announcement of 
its fatal termination, the imposing demonstrations of 
respect tendered to his memory and services, and the 
multiplied evidences of sincere and general sorrow 
which have followed that announcement, admonish 
us that our professional brother, whose loss we mourn 
and whose recollection we cherish, was no ordinary 
personage. It rarely happens, even in our own glori- 
ous country, where all legal and adventitious hin- 
drances are removed from before the march of merit, 
where the race is usually to the swift and the battle 
to the strong, that one comes to occupy, at so early 
an age, so large a measure in the public eye, or pos- 
sess so linn a hold of the popular heart. Though yet 
in the early dawn and dew of manhood. Col. Jackson 
has inscribed his name upon the imperishable records 



PROCEEDINGS OP THE ALBANY BAR. 19 

of his country, and left his footprints deeply traced on 
the sands of time. A nation, for whose life and whose 
honor he drew his sword, witnessed, with emotions of 
sorrow, his passage from the theatre of life ; and the 
great, the gifted, and the brave followed his bier and 
mingled as mourners in his funeral train. Thus, let 
a grateful people ever hallow the memory of the brave 
defenders of the land and flag of our fathers. Our 
departed friend has left a blameless life, a bright and 
brave example for the imitation of all, especially for 
our youth. At a period when success, with young 
men of brightest promise, is yet the subject of conjec- 
ture, he had accomplished ends and achieved a position 
which exempt life from the possibilities of failure, and 
enabled him to say, as he turned his youthful eyes for 
the last time to the light of Heaven, I have not 
" lived in vain nor spent my strength for naught." 

A gentleman by instinct and education, possessed 
of a fine person and fascinating manners, a large heart 
and a true and genial nature, endowed with a rare 
intellect, enriched by varied and manly cultivation, 
he became the idol of every circle in which he 
mingled, a cherished companion among his associates, 
the trusted depositary of the most sacred treasures of 
a well chosen friendship, the pride of his family and 



20 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 

kindred, and a favorite with the public. As a public 
speaker Col. Jackson was eloquent and forcible, and 
to rare conversational powers he added the pen of a 
ready and elegant writer. As a member of this bar, 
at which he had secured no indifferent reputation, we 
remember him as a brother without reproach. His 
warm hand, his beaming and manly face, will greet us 
no more. We shall miss him at the bar, in the halls 
of justice, from our social gatherings, in the public 
and private walks of life, but in the innermost shrines 
of our hearts, and so long as life lasts, we will cherish 
his memory, fragrant with every manly virtue, and 
free from every suspicion of dishonor. We will think 
of him for his noble qualities of head and heart, for 
the example he has left behind him, for the expecta- 
tions he had realized, and the hopes he had inspired. 

In all the relations of private life, and in all the 
varied and responsible positions with which he was 
trusted, he preserved to the last " the whiteness of his 
soul, and men weep tor him." 

It is, after all, as a patriot and soldier, and not as a 
lawyer, we meel to do him honor. True, the ranks of 
our profession have been invaded and another link 
has been stricken from the bright fraternal chain 

which hinds us together; a choice spirit has dropt 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 21 

from our circle and passed forever away, and we con- 
fess our loss ; but it is our country and not our class 
that is smitten by this bereavement. Brave of heart 
and strong of hand, loving his country and revering 
her insulted flag, he was among the first to respond to 
the call of the nation, in the hour of her sudden and 
greatest peril. Though uneducated to the profession 
of arms, he brought to the duties of his high com- 
mand unwearied industry and all the acknowledged 
vigor of his mind, and at the time of his death had 
already become an accomplished and efficient officer, 
enjoyed the confidence of the Government and of his 
superiors in command, was rapidly rising in the opi- 
nions of the army, and had secured to the fullest 
extent the respect and love of his gallant Regiment, 
which, under his discipline, had become by common 
consent one of the best and most efficient in the 
service. 

Tried upon the field of battle and found wanting in 
none of the stern requisites of a soldier, he had before 
him the promise of a brilliant and glorious future. In 
the inscrutable providence of God, the hand of death 
has overtaken him and he is removed from the tumult 
of arms and the scenes of earth. But he has fallen in 
the career of duty and the path of fame, with his bow 



22 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 

bent, his feet to the field and his armor on. To the 
patriot the memory of such is sweet. 

S. 0. Shepard, Esq., then spoke as follows : 

Mr. Chairman: 

The character of William A. Jackson requires not 
eulogy, to commemorate its beauty. Yet a suggestion 
has just been made to me, the propriety of which can- 
not be questioned, that some member of this Bar, 
should in behalf of the Bar briefly endorse the truthful 
and touching tribute which has just been rendered to 
his memory. 

That duty should more properly be performed, by 
some one whose acquaintance with the deceased had 
been of longer standing, and whose intercourse with 
him had been more intimate than have mine. Until 
within two years immediately preceding his death. 
I had known but little of William A. Jackson. Since 
that time by a casual incident I had been brought 
into more intimate association with him. sufficiently 
so to see. in that brief period, very much to love and 
very much to admire. For his was a character of 
that east which required not long years of intercourse 
for its proper appreciation. 

Cultivated in hia tastes, broadly catholic in his 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 23 

opinions and unselfish in his disposition, manly in 
bearing and frank in address, in his intercourse with 
men he at once demanded from them the confidence 
which by them was at once as readily conceded. With 
such qualifications he adopted the profession of law ; 
a profession which bestows with but niggard hand her 
commendation, unless that commendation be deserved ; 
and yet I hesitate not in saying, that I express but 
the opinion of every gentleman of this Bar when I 
say, that William A. Jackson had already attained in 
that profession a position which is more frequently 
denied, than conceded, to those whose years by scores 
outnumbered his own. Mingling much with men as 
he did, and possessing an address which so readily 
commended him to the favorable recognition of the 
people, he soon became intensely interested in the great 
political questions of the day. Identifying himself 
heartily with those principles which distinguished the 
party in whose ranks he was enrolled, he enlisted, in 
the advocacy and support of those principles, a culti- 
vated mind and a ready and graceful oratory. 

And, when, owing to those events so familiar to 
all, which have cast a shadow so deep and so dark 
over the political destinies of our country, principles 
could no longer be advocated in the field of intellect ; 



24 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 

when the pen was compelled to give place to physical 
prowess, and logic to the stern arbitrament of the 
sword ; when our stricken country, turned her troubled 
eye towards her loyal sons, almost despairingly to ask, 
who among them would advocate her cause, the cause 
of liberty, in this new field, on whose bloody sod, 
death lurked, in his most horrid forms; then was 
heard the ready response of William A. Jackson, true 
to himself, true to his unselfish nature, and true to his 
country, alike in her woe as in her weal, " Here am 
1, send me ! " Turning resolutely from the induce- 
ment s of a noble and remunerative profession, as well 
as from the attractions of cultivated society and the 
amenities of home, he stepped unfalteringly forth from 
the vocations of peace to oiler himself a volunteer in 
the cause of his country. The offer was the result of 
no transient enthusiasm fanned into life by the 
breeze of these mighty events, which, as they swept 
l>\ in their ordained procession, were shaking to its 
foundations the fabric of our national existence. Nor 
was it the creature of that harmless vanity which 
exult- in the display of military insignia in holiday 
parade. No! no! for. bark! the measured tread of 
armed men falls upon the ear; and they are clad. too. 
Ddl in the trappings of bolidaj parade, but in the 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 25 

stern habiliments of active service. It is the tramp 
of a regiment ! the 18th Regiment, as it moves through 
the streets of our city on its way to do battle in the 
cause of our country. And at its head, with steady 
step, marches its young and chivalrous Colonel, — 
William A. Jackson. 

But William A. Jackson is dead! dead, ere the 
first ruddy flush of early manhood had faded from 
his cheek, — dead, before the last echoes of the heavy 
tramp of his marching regiment had fairly died from 
our hearing. That sad, sad pageant of yesterday, 
with its funeral melodies, its riderless horses, and its 
sorrow-bowed mourners, tells us that the tumult of 
the coming conflict and the clash of arms will only 
fall upon a dull, cold ear; that his eye will never 
again light up with the enthusiasm of battle, or kindle 
with joy over the brightening prospects of the country 
which he loved. 

But, with such a record, it seems almost but idle 
ceremony to stand here and utter words of eulogy. 

William A. Jackson has bequeathed to those who 
survive him a name not, perhaps, imperishable, but 
one which will be identified with the future history of 
his country. 

Although he died not, perhaps, as a soldier would 



26 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 

most wish to die, upon the battle-field, with his face 
to the foe, fanned by the folds of his country's flag, as 
it waves in the rush of the conflict, yet he died in his 
country's cause, in his country's service, and with 
" his martial cloak around him." He has laid upon 
the altar of his country all that she could ask of her 
child, — himself. History will do him justice; his 
country will not forget him. 

Blessings be upon his memory, and "may the earth 
rest light upon him ! " 

His Honor, Recorder Austin, further addressed the 
meeting, as follows: 

Without solicitation from any one, but simply be- 
cause I feel that it becomes me to contribute my mite 
to the honor which we have met to pay to the memory 
of one of the most esteemed of the younger members 
of our bar, I beg to be indulged in the expression of 
my own sympathy with all that has been said and 
done here. 

It was my fortune to know him not only in the 
exercise of his profession, but also with a considerable 
degree of personal intimacy. I can add nothing but 
niy approval to what lias been said of his uncommon 
aptitude lor professional pursuits, his quick and pene- 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 27 

trating intelligence, his ready word, his scholarly 
acquirements, and his genial and generous nature. 

In this last respect, he added the quality, which 
often renders men beloved as well as respected, of 
being quite as confiding in the honor of others, as 
he was himself faithful to any confidence reposed 
in him* 

We have come here, however, to honor him not 
merely, nor indeed mainly, for his professional and 
social character, but for the devotion of his life to the 
service of his country at a dark crisis in her history, 
and I cannot omit an allusion to the spirit and motive 
with which he entered on his last career. In my 
own judgment, it was not through any vulgar ambi- 
tion for mere military distinction, but from a convic- 
tion of duty much more honorable to him. 

In a brief but free conversation with him at the 
first outbreak of the war, he gave such expression to 
his sentiments on this matter, as satisfied me that he 
did it from a sense of personal obligation, which 
bound him by every consideration of respect for his 
Own character and his own position in the world, to 
make every sacrifice for the restoration of his country, 
and called upon him, like an outspoken public opinion, 
that he should go ! 



28 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 



It always seemed to me, therefore, that he enlisted 
in this war in the spirit of sacrifice, which makes men 
not only heroes and patriots, but martyrs. 

In obeying this sentiment of duty, and giving away 
his life in a cause so noble, he has given proof of a 
loyalty and public spirit which sheds, not only upon 
his own name and on our own bar, but on our entire 
profession, a ray of enduring honor. 

Hon. John V. L. Pruyn then said : 

It is not my intention, Mr. Chairman, to add to 
what has so appropriately been said of the life and 
character of Mr. Jackson, but simply to speak of my 
regard for his memory, and to express the respect and 
deep sympathy I entertain for the father and the 
mother who have lost a much loved son, and for the 
family circle from which a dearly prized member has 
been suddenly removed. 

I knew the deceased somewhat, almost from his boy- 
hood, and for some years past had met him frequently 
in social life, and occasionally in professional matters. 
His manly bearing, his frankness, his kindness of 
heart, and his good mental capacities, impressed me 
most favorably, and I looked upon his future as one 
both of hope and promise. He went forth as a true 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 29 

member of our profession to the defence of the consti- 
tution and laws of his country, most unjustifiably 
assailed by some of its own sons, and laid down his 
life in the effort to re-establish and vindicate the 
authority of the government under which he was born, 
and to which he acknowledged his faith and allegiance. 
He died early, but he died well. It becomes me not 
to speak of his closing hours, more than to say that 
he met his last foe, he to whom we all must bow, with 
calmness and hopeful trust in the future, and that we 
have good reason to believe that he left the struggles 
of this life for the rest and peace of a better. 

I am glad to find so many of the members of the 
Bar met to honor the memory of their departed 
brother, and I hope that our proceedings may be placed 
in a more extended and permanent form, than the 
brief notice to which the journals of the day must 
necessarily be confined. 

J. M. Kimball, Esq., then spoke as follows : 

Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen : 

In all that has been said of our deceased brother, I 
fully concur. The eloquent tributes paid to his memo- 
ry are well deserved. He was possessed of great 
talents, adorned by a finished education. Scarce thirty 



30 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 



years of age, he had attained an honorable place at the 
Bar, prominence throughout our state as an orator, 
and had reached high official position in the state 
government. His heart was as good, as his head was 
clear. Very few enemies, and friends without number, 
were his. I rise to relate an incident which I heard 
told of him by Capt. Green of the United States Army, 
the day after the battle of Bull Run : Capt. Green's 
battery was stationed near the left wing of the army, 
where he was ordered to open on the enemy's right. 
He had some difficulty in finding a regiment willing 
to cover his battery, when Col. Jackson stepped for- 
ward, and voluntarily said, " I will cover your battery 
with my regiment, sir." He kept his word, and Capt. 
Green pronounced him a good officer and brave man. 
The promptness and courage shown by him on that 
occasion, proves how worthily he filled his high mili- 
tary command. The words " I will cover your battery 
with my regiment, sir," and the valor of himself and 
men on that day, will ever be a just source of pride to 
his friends and countrymen, and carry his name far 
down to the future. 

Hon. A. D. Robinson, Chairman of the Committee, 
then presented the following 






PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 31 



RESOLUTIONS. 

In the flower of his age, in the midst of a life 
giving the most brilliant promise, has departed from 
this world, William A. Jackson, a member of the 
Albany Bar. Assembled as we are in view of this 
sad event : 

Resolved, That we have heard of the death of our 
late associate, William A. Jackson, with feelings of 
heartfelt sorrow. Short, comparatively, as has been 
his career among us, we had not failed to recognize and 
appreciate his intellectual abilities, his noble qualities 
of mind, and his high attainments. His genial dispo- 
sition, added to these, endeared him to us, and plea- 
sant thoughts of our intercourse with him in times 
gone by linger round his memory. 

Resolved, That we honor the memory of him who, 
leaving the well earned rewards of his profession, 
volunteered at his country's call to do her bidding. 
While acting nobly his part as a patriot and a soldier, 
he was summoned hence, and there was added to the 
roll of the honored dead the name of our departed 
brother. 



32 PROCEEDINGS OF THE ALBANY BAR. 

Resolved, That in his death our country has lost 
an officer who had proved himself worthy the trust 
reposed in him ; our profession a cherished ornament ; 
and a large circle of friends and acquaintances one 
endeared by the strongest ties of love and friendship. 

Resolved, That sympathizing as we do with the 
family of the deceased, we would point them to his 
honorable career, and pray that God would sustain 
and comfort them in this the hour of their affliction 
and trial. 

The resolutions having been unanimously adopted, 
Hon. John K. Porter suggested that the officers of 
the meeting, and Messrs. Pruyn, Cochrane, Olcott, 
Shepard, Strong and J. Howard King, be appointed a 
Committee, on behalf of the Bar, to prepare some 
fitting Memorial, more effectually to perpetuate the 
proceedings of this meeting. 

On motion of Orlando Meads, Esq., the meeting 
adjourned. 



kam&imp at the (Bumtm §hm\hn\ 



By direction of his Excellency, Gov. Morgan, the 
members of his staff, present in Albany, met in the 
Executive Chamber, on the evening of Nov. 12th, to 
take such action as might be deemed appropriate in 
regard to the death of Col. William A. Jackson, com- 
manding the 18th Regiment of New York State 
Volunteers, and formerly Inspector-General of this 
State, who expired at Washington on the evening of 
the 11th instant. 

The following members of his staff were pre- 
sent: Adjutant-General Hillhouse, Inspector-General 
Patrick, Commissary-General Welch, Surgeon-General 
Vanderpoel, Quartermaster-General Van Vechten, Aide- 
de-Camp Arden, and Military Secretary Linsley 

On assuming the Chair, his Excellency expressed, 
with great feeling, his deep sense of the sad occasion 
which had induced him to convene the members of 
his military family, and suggested that such action 
should be had as the melancholy event called for. 



34 



PROCEEDINGS AT THE EXECUTIVE CHAMBER. 



He added that the death of Col. Jackson came upon 
us with peculiar force. That he had been an esteemed 
member of his staff, and was a much-loved citizen of 
Albany at the time he assumed the command of the 
Regiment, and that it was eminently proper that 
this especial notice should be taken of his death, by 
himself and the members of his staff who were now 
present. 

Whereupon Com.-Gen. Welch, with the permission 
of his Excellency, submitted the following resolu- 
tions : 

Resolved, That we have heard, with emotions of 
profound sorrow, of the death of a former associate, 
Col. William A. Jackson, commanding the 18th Regi- 
ment of New York Volunteers, who was among the 
first to sacrifice honorable public position, professional 
honors and emoluments, and cherished personal asso- 
ciations, in defence of the flag of the country and the 
integrity of the Union. 

Resolved, That in the death of this young soldier, 
who was endeared to us by those sterling characteris- 
tics of manhood which he possessed in so eminent a 
degree, we are overwhelmed with grief, not only be- 
cause an estimable friend and associate has been taken 
from us, hut because the country, now passing the 



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PROCEEDINGS AT THE EXECUTIVE CHAMBER. 35 

severest ordeal of its existence, has lost one of its able 
and zealous champions. 

Resolved, That the loss of Col. Jackson, so deeply 
felt here, in the city of his former residence, and so 
much to be deplored everywhere, calls for some public 
manifestation of the wide spread sorrow which his 
early death has evoked. 

Resolved, That his Excellency the Governor, be 
respectfully requested to forward to the immediate 
relatives of the deceased, a copy of these resolutions, 
with an expression of our deep and unaffected sym- 
pathy with them in this, their great bereavement. 

Which were unanimously adopted. 



(&tnm\ (BuUx. 



Headquarters 5th Brigade, 

November 15, 1861. 

[General Order No. 13.] 

The General commanding the Brigade, on his return, 
has heard with lively sorrow of the decease of Col. 
William A. Jackson, commanding the 18th Regiment, 
New York Volunteers. 

Deprived, by circumstances over which he had no 
control, of the melancholy privilege of witnessing his 
last moments or of being present at the funeral 
obsequies, the General commanding wishes at least to 
testify his profound sense of the loss to the service 
experienced by the decease of this accomplished 
soldier and gentleman. 

The high state of discipline and efficiency attained 
by the 18th Regiment is a testimony to the zeal and 
intelligence of the deceased more honorable and com- 
plete than the most elaborate eulogium. 

]}y order Brig. Gen. Newton. 

J AS. E. MONTGOMERY, Asst. Adj. Gen. 



^mhxtww of t\xt 18th Regiment. 



At a meeting of the 18th Regiment, N. Y. S. V., 
at Camp King, Nov. 18th, 1861, the following pre- 
amble and resolutions were unanimously adopted : 

Whereas, it has pleased God, in his all-wise pro- 
vidence, to take from our midst our beloved Colonel, 
William A. Jackson ; therefore, be it 

Resolved, That while we bow in submission to the 
fiat that has taken from us our gallant and generous 
commander, we deeply mourn his death, and feel that 
we have lost not only an accomplished and brave 
officer, but a true friend and brother. 

Resolved, That in the death of Col. Jackson, the 
nation has lost a patriot, the army of the Potomac 
one of her ablest and most efficient officers ; one who, 
in the hour of battle, sacrificed all considerations of 
personal safety to the interests of his country. 

Resolved, That while cognizant of our own sad- 
ness, we are not forgetful of the grief of those upon 
whom the affliction falls most heavily. To the be- 



38 



EESOLUTIOXS. 



reaved parents and family of the deceased, we tender 
our heartfelt sympathy and condolence. 

Resolved, That the Regiment wear the usual badge 
of mourning for thirty days. 

Resolved, That copies of these resolutions be trans- 
mitted to the parents of the deceased, to Co. A, 
Albany Zouave Cadets, 10th Regiment N. Y. S. M., 
and to the Albany and Schenectady papers. 
WM. H. YOUNG, Lt. Col., 

Commanding 18th N. Y. S. V. 
Lieut. Wm. Horsfall, Acting Adjutant. 



Itootttiw <rf the Albany %omvt Cadets. 



« • ■ m 



At a meeting of the Albany Zouave Cadets, held at 
their armory, Monday evening, November 11th, Capt. 
Cuyler Van Vechten announced to the company the 
solemn news of the death of Col. Jackson. On 
motion, a committee of four were appointed, who 
reported the following resolutions, which were unani- 
mously adopted : 

Resolved, That we profoundly deplore the loss sus- 
tained by our country in the death of that gallant 
and accomplished officer, William A. Jackson, late 
Colonel 18th Regiment New York State Volunteers. 

Resolved, That in this calamity we, as a company, 
mourn the departure of one who, connected with our 
organization from its origin, was equally loved by us 
for his many noble qualities of heart, and admired for 
his high intellectual culture and abilities. 

Resolved, That we tender our sympathies to the 
officers and privates of the 18th Regiment, in appre- 
ciation of the great loss they have been called upon 
to meet in the death of their leader; and that we 




sincerely condole with the relatives of the deceased 
in their present deep affliction. 

Resolved. That we attend the funeral obsequies 
and escort the remains to the tomb with military 
honors; and that we wear the usual badge of mourn- 
ing for thirty days. 

Resolved, That a copy of these resolutions be trans- 
mitted to the family of the deceased ; and also to the 
18th Regiment, and that these resolutions be inserted 
in the daily papers of this city. 

(Signed.) A. C. JUDSON, Chairman. 

D. S. Benton, Secretary, 



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